Online Video Publishing

The new ScreenFlow 4 for Mac is out and it offers a number of valuable new features including:

1. Nested Clips: Merge multiple elements into a single (nested) clip whose content can be accessed and edited on a separate tabbed timeline.

2. Closed Caption support: Use ScreenFlow's caption editor tool to add, edit and publish ADA Compliant soft subtitles as caption tracks to your MPEG-4 movies.

3. Chroma Key: Replace your green (or any color) background with your own video or still image background with a single click.

4. MPEG 4 Export: Export faster, higher quality MPEG-4 files using the x264 codec.

5. Faster, more robust 64-bit: ScreenFlow 4 runs as a fully 64-bit application under OS X 10.7 Lion and above which improves overall performance, memory usage, export speed, and scalability.

If your goal is to record your computer screen to demo a product, explain a subject or put your voice over a presentation, ScreenFlow is one of the two top choices you have available (the other one being Camtasia).

Find out more: http://www.telestream.net/screenflow/whats-new.htm

Download free trial: http://dynamic.telestream.net/downloads/download-screenflow.asp?prodid=screenflow

Google Translate has just announced that it is now possible to order professional translations of any video transcription directly from within your YouTube account.

Not only.

You can also get an immediate time delivery estimate and a precise cost for the translation task and you can pay immediately for it via credit card/PayPal.

From the official Google Translate blog: "Now you can connect directly with translation vendors and pay to get your captions translated quickly and professionally.  

When you request a translation for your captions in YouTube, we’ll display a list of vendors along with their estimated pricing and delivery date so you can easily compare. We’ve initially collaborated with two companies, Gengo and Translated.net, to make their services available to you and to streamline the ordering process."

Techcrunch coverage: http://go.translated.net/TechCrunch

Original announcement: http://googletranslate.blogspot.it/2013/02/get-your-youtube-video-captions.html

The Amazon Elastic Transcoder (http://aws.amazon.com/elastictranscoder), is a new web-based service that makes it easy to convert video clips between different file formats without needing to buy and install any dedicated software.

The service is designed to be very easy to use and you pay for what you use. 20 minutes of free transcoding, are available to all users each month.

(See: http://aws.amazon.com/free)

Video file formats supported: 3GP, AAC, AVI, FLV, MP4 and MPEG-2 as input and H.264/AAC/MP4 as output file formats.

Prices start at just $0.015/minute for Standard Definition content, and $0.030/minute for High Definition content.

Pricing Examples

1. A 10 minute source file in US West (Oregon) transcoded to an SD output will cost 10 x $0.015 = $0.15.
2. A 10 minute source file in US East (N. Virginia) transcoded to an HD output will cost 10 x $0.030 = $0.30.
3. A 10 minute source file in EU (Ireland) transcoded to one SD and one HD output will cost (10 x $0.017) + (10 x $0.034) = $0.51.

FAQ: http://aws.amazon.com/elastictranscoder/faqs/

Pricing info: http://aws.amazon.com/elastictranscoder/pricing/

Find out more: http://aws.amazon.com/elastictranscoder/

The Broadcastpod is a physical mini-room designed for video recording a newscast, a video show, videoconferencing meeting, a webcast or webinar or anything else that requires proper lighting, video camera, background in an always-ready-to-use minimal setup.

The Broadcastpod offers a mini studio shooting room that can be installed in one day equipped with broadcast quality lighting, Hi Definition cameras, chroma-key ready backdrop, teleprompter.

The smallest version occupies 2.8 squared meters.

iOS powered. Everything works at the touch of a button.

Air ventilated. Wherever you are located the Broadcastpod is setup to offer always a cool, fresh environment for trnsmitting live video.

Available in different sizes. Check:

http://www.broadcastpod.tv/broadcastpod_trio.php

http://www.broadcastpod.tv/broadcastpod_xl.php

http://www.broadcastpod.tv/broadcastpod.php

Find out more: http://www.broadcastpod.tv/broadcastpod.php

For pricing or a demo, contact: 0845 600 6122 or info@dreamtek.tv

Make.tv is a professional web-based platform for live video streaming directly from your desktop browser or, with dedicated apps, from your mobile smartphone.

The platform integrates a full studio-editor that allows to integrate and mix multiple video camera feeds, titles, overlays, while also facilitating distributed teamwork, by supporting internal talk between newsroom personnel during a live video stream.

Finally, Make.tv has unique features for audience interaction, allowing the audience to submit content, chat live, and even vote and take polls during a live event.

Free plan available. Allows for up to 30-minutes per day of live broadcasting.

Pricing: http://www.make.tv/en/pages/payment

Check out the superuseful tools available here: http://www.make.tv/pages/tools

FAQ: http://www.make.tv/en/pages/faq

Video tutorials: http://www.make.tv/make.tv_tutorials

More info: http://www.make.tv/

SmartConverter is a free downloadable video conversion utility for both Apple Mac computers and Windows PCs capable of transcoding almost any video file into the format most appropriate for playback on a number of different types of devices (especially Apple ones).

From iPhone/iPad to Playstation, tablets, computer screen, SmartConverter allows easy video conversion in just a few clicks by way of its many available conversion presets.

Very simple to use.

Good for non-techies and newbies. Free.

Mac version - Download from App Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smart-converter/id447513724?ls=1&mt=12

Windows version - http://shedworx.com/smartconverter-windows

Try it out: www.shedworx.com/smartconverter

"Henshaws College has launched an accessible version of YouTube, which was funded by Jisc through Jisc Advance. It allows people with learning difficulties and disabilities to use this mainstream technology independently.

ACCESS: YouTube simplifies the standard You Tube site making it easier to search and play videos, and allows the use of assistive technologies. It is now publicly available so everyone can benefit from this accessible method."

Source: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/news/stories/2013/02/access-youtube.aspx

Free to use.

Try it out now: http://accessyoutube.org.uk/

Crowd-subtitling platform Amara.org has launched a free service that allows any YouTube creator to invite viewers to subtitle their videos and sync the subtitles to their YouTube account. 

This is the first-ever subtitle crowdsourcing option available for free to YouTube users, letting them invite viewers to translate their videos into dozens of languages.  (Amara is also launching a professional version of the feature for companies and organizations that want to take their channel global.)
 
The new YouTube app launched today gives any YouTube user a crowdsourced translation and captioning system. 
 

How it works: For YouTube users, the functionality is simple.  They visit Amara.org, connect their YouTube channel, and any videos in their YouTube channel will include a link inviting users to help subtitle.  When subtitles are created by a user, for example a Spanish translation, they will be synced automatically back to the YouTube account and will be available on any site in which the video is embedded.

The new video codec standard promising reduced file sizes, better compression and faster downloads its making its final rounds of approval while being gradually integrated into new products (the iPad already does).

Within a year or two it will be on our video export option list.

From the blog at Dreamtek.tv: "HEVC (sometimes called H.265) succeeds H.264 and is set to become essential to the development and distribution of high resolution video formats, such as Ultra High Definition.

The first devices to deploy HEVC support are expected to reach market early this year, Rovi Corporation announced at CES this month. The standard is expected to be ratified in early 2013."

"Once deployed, video consumers should be able to download video at the same quality as today in up to half the time, using up half the storage space when they do."

"HEVC/H.265 supports resolutions up to 8,192-x-4,320 and delivers double the data compression ratio of H.264. Where H.264 supports a maximum macroblock of 16-x-16 pixels, HEVC delivers up to 64-x-64 pixels."

Must read. 7/10

Find out more: http://blog.dreamtek.tv/2013/01/14/the-future-is-here-a-brief-guide-to-hevc/

More info on H.265-HEVC:

• http://hevc.info/
• http://www.vcodex.com/h265.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Efficiency_Video_Coding
• http://www.itu.int/net/pressoffice/press_releases/2013/01.aspx

If you are a videomaker, you know how important audio is to your final production, and having something better than the built-in camcorder mike is always a good idea. The RØDE iXY is a good recording microphone for any iPhone or iPad that you can use to record separately your audio track, to be rejoined later to your video clip inside yoyr favorite video editing program (iMovie, Moviemaker, Vegas, FinalCut, Premiere, etc.)

The iXY can record with a quality of 24-bit/96k and it has on-board high-fidelity A/D conversion.

"At the heart of the iXY is a matched pair of ½” cardioid condenser capsules, fixed in a perfect 90 degree ‘near-coincident’ alignment.

This results in immersive and true-to-life stereo recordings, captured in incredibly high detail. The iXY is supplied with a foam windshield for outdoor recording as well as a reinforced protective zip case to ensure your iXY is available whenever you need it."

Price: $ 199

For more information and to hear audio samples visit www.ixymic.com.

or go here: http://store.rodemic.com/products/ixy

(Thanks to PlanetMitch for catching this one first)

Kondoot is a social live video streaming platform that allows anyone to broadcast video in real-time and to record it and to share it on all major social media platforms.

You can schedule events, upload recorded clips and go live anytime you wish to.

Kondoot also allows for Premium shows, in which the broadcaster can set a price for people who want to participate.

Free to use.

More info: http://kondoot.com/p/about

FAQ: http://kondoot.com/p/help

Try it out now: http://kondoot.com/

(Thanks to Giuseppe Gagliano who first suggested it to me)